The word “macronutrient” means any nutrient we need in large quantities. We need three essential macronutrients (carbohydrates, fat, and protein) and three essential micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, and water).
But before we get into each macro, let’s backtrack. What is it that CCN teaches? In our non-dieting approach, we believe the body works best together with the proper macronutrient breakdown. Here’s our method, and it’s so simple!
We teach:
Combine macros at every meal. We suggest roughly 50% of calories should come from carbs, 20% from protein, and 30% from fat.
To eat within an hour of waking up and every 3-4 hours after that. The goal is to hit four hours on the dot, but we know that isn’t always realistic, and we never want you feeling overly hungry.
So not only is quantity important, but frequency is as well. These two factors are vital for understanding the CCN way of life. You may be surprised about our take on carbs… but let me explain. Many dieting approaches are reducing your carb intake to get the body to drop weight and decrease hunger. Unfortunately, our bodies are not calculators; otherwise, this approach would work great. It only solves a very small portion of anyone’s issues. Many diets teach you to fast in the mornings, or they say no carbs with dinner. But here’s what I see happening... it's not sustainable, and some negative (potentially long-term) effects occur.
Carbs are water-bound molecules. So when people cut out or drastically reduce carbs, they tend to lose water weight (read: NOT fat). Since carbs are water-bound molecules, cutting carbs is essentially dehydrating the body. People see the scale go down, so they think that it is working, and in a way, it is, but as soon as they start eating carbs again, all the water comes back on. So, the low-carb strategy is more or less a gimmick.
I see our bodies depleted of necessary glucose to fuel our energy cycles, power our muscles and brains, and support our natural detoxification systems. When we go long enough with too few carbs, we also reduce our bodies’ capacity for insulin sensitivity, which can lead to insulin resistance down the road. The same goes for abusing carbs! Too much and insufficient can cause some of the same long-term problems. Crazy, huh?
If you’ve come from a dieting or restrictive eating past, you are well aware of the long-lasting, systemic harm that diets cause, which has only worsened in the social media day and age. Food is meant to fuel our bodies, and we want you to understand that through some basic science, but more importantly, we want you to FEEL the difference. How long does that take, you may wonder? As quick as five days and as long as 14 days! (And potentially as long as 3-6 months with a history of hormonal or metabolic damage.) People get to feeling better, and then they go back to their old ways, disrupting the changes that were only beginning to take place. Our bodies are not robots, and we can’t reprogram them automatically; we must do this manually and consistently over time.
Our cells are constantly in a cycle of cell proliferation, repair, death, replenishment, etc., and we are literally built and repaired on the cellular level from nutrients we absorb from the food we eat. Do you want a house of sticks or steel, bricks, and mortar? You have the profound opportunity to make those changes with every food choice you make!
In addition to eating your macronutrients combined together, we encourage you to utilize real food sources, eating as many colors in fruits and vegetables as possible. We ask you to get at least five daily, but more is even better! As a basic rule of thumb, utilizing both complex and simple carbs in each meal is helpful.
As you start adding in more colors and eating the proper combinations of macronutrients, many other things fall into place from a dietary standpoint: fiber, omega-3, antioxidant intake, improved digestion and absorption, and more. While our bodies work to get back to a place of optimal functioning, they prioritize healing what’s most important first. Your fat cells will eventually begin decreasing, and your weight loss will come, but it may be slower as your body recovers and repairs long-term damage. You will become a better version of yourself instead of just shrinking down. Be patient with yourself. Trust the system. You’re allowed to succeed!
Want more macros education? Check out our Macros Masterclass!